Difference between HTTP and HTTPS

Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is a protocol for transmitting and receiving information across the Internet.

Https=Http + SSL

1. URL begins with “http://" in case of HTTP while the URL begins with “https://” in case of HTTPS.
2. HTTP is unsecured while HTTPS is secured.
3. HTTP uses port 80 for communication while HTTPS uses port 443 for communication.
4. HTTP operates at Application Layer while HTTPS operates at Transport Layer.
5. No encryption is there in HTTP while HTTPS uses encryption.
6. No certificates required in HTTP while certificates required in HTTPS.


SSL:

1. Authenticate the server to the client.
2. Allow the client and server to select the cryptographic algorithms, or ciphers, that they both support.
3. Optionally authenticate the client to the server.
4. Use public-key encryption techniques to generate shared secrets.
5. Establish an encrypted SSL connection.
6. Once the SSL connection is established the usual transfer of HTTP requests will continue.

Where should https be used?

HTTPS should be used in Banking Websites, Payment Gateway, Shopping Websites, Login Pages, Emails (Gmail offers HTTPS by default in Chrome browser) and Corporate Sector Websites.